Capella Space forms governmental entity, The Exploration Company and Voyager secures millions, NASA has pushed the ISS to its lim

Precious Payload’s Weekly Smallsat News:

January 30–February 5, 2023

Everything you need to know about recent smallsat headlines around the universe.

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Launch Updates

🇵🇱SatRev enters a new agreement with 🇺🇸Virgin Orbit to launch SatRev’s STORK 3U cubesats. Now, from the 🇺🇸Mojave Air and Space Port in 2023 and beyond. [Spaceref]

 

🇺🇸True Anomaly prepares to launch its Demo-1 mission with two Jackal “orbital pursuit” spacecraft aboard Falcon 9 in October 2023. [Wired]

 

🇺🇸Ovzon shifts the launch of its Ovzon 3 satellites from Arianespace to SpaceX, due to a delay in satellite production. The launch is to be between July and September this year. [SmallsatNews]

Funding

🇺🇸Embedded Ventures launches a $100M inaugural fund to support companies in the space sector that cater to commercial and national security customers. [CNBC]

 

🇺🇸AWS announces the 2023 AWS Space Accelerator, which will include up to 15 startups. Application window closes on March 6. [AWS]

 

🇺🇸Orbital Sidekick raises $10M to launch the first two of its six-satellite constellation, GHOSt, via the Transporter 7 mission this year. [SpaceNews] [LaunchSchedule]

 

🇬🇧TDGA Holdings—the owner of Space Hero, a reality show about space exploration—announces a $20M seed round for a multi-launch agreement including first-of-its-kind space-marketing rights. The investments will fund private missions that will allow competitors to orbit Earth, fly to ISS and the Moon, and ultimately be part of the first mission to Mars. [EconomicTimes]

 

🇫🇷/🇩🇪The Exploration Company secures €40.5M in funding to launch its full-scale space capsule in 2026 (Nyx Mission Odyssey, to ship goods to space stations) and a capsule demonstrator in 2024 (Nyx Mission Possible, to perform a controlled re-entry into the atmosphere). [SpaceWatchGlobal]

 

🇺🇸Virgin Orbit takes on more debt from the investment arm of Richard Branson’s Virgin Group, with the company announcing a $10M loan. [ParabolicArc]

 

🇺🇸Sidus Space raises $5.2M to launch its LizzieSat constellation to LEO this year aboard Falcon 9. [SpaceNews]

 

🇺🇸Voyager Space banks $80.2M for the development of the private space station, Starlab, to support LEO-destination programs. [TechCrunch]

 

Headlines

🇺🇸Lockheed Martin to launch its LM 400 mid-sized satellite bus in 2023, and a second demonstrator in 2024. The company has not yet announced which launch provider will fly these demonstration missions in low, medium, and geostationary orbits. [SpaceNews]

 

🇺🇸Capella Space forms a subsidiary, 🇺🇸Capella Federal, which will give its US customers expanded access to SAR imagery with increased security and on-demand reliability. [SpaceWatchGlobal]

 

🇺🇸NASA has reached the limit for utilization of the ISS, in terms of crew time and the ability to get cargo to and from the station. [SpaceNews]

 

Opinions

🇬🇧Seraphim published their ‘in-space ecosystem map’ of the companies making up the current space economy. [Seraphim]

 

🇮🇳A newsletter covering the Indian space sector discusses its progress in 2022 and what to look forward to in 2023. [IndianSpaceProgress]

 

🇩🇪Capitol Momentum and European Spaceflight release a report with a comparative analysis of Germany’s “microlauchers.” [LinkedIn]

 

🛰️ SatMagazine unveils their overview of 🇪🇺Europe’s launch sector, which discusses launch delays and failures, the consequences of the war in Ukraine for the space sector, and other challenges. [SatMagazine]

 

… And one more interesting article from a new SatMagazine edition: How the miniaturization of satellites within the NewSpace industry brings its own advantages and efficiencies. [SatMagazine]

 

 

Check out Precious Payload’s Weekly Smallsat News: January 23–29, 2023